Thirty disparate directors discuss their transformative moviegoing experiences in this collection of revealing and entertaining interviews. The subjects cover the cinematic gamut, from mainstream veterans (Arthur Hiller, Bill Condon), art-house auteurs (Guy Maddin, Atom Egoyan), and young turks (Jay Duplass, Richard Kelly) to cult figures (Kevin Smith, John Waters), documentarians (Alex Gibney, Steve James) and animators (Pete Docter, Chris Miller). Some watched their pivotal flick as children—John Landis saw the fantasy epic The 7th Voyage of Sinbad at age eight and said, “Hey, I could do that”—while others were already committed to the medium and viewed their picks in film school. Many of the choices show an obvious influence—for instance, John Woo, renowned for his hard-boiled Hong Kong crime epics, cited Rebel without a Cause and Mean Streets—but others are genuinely surprising, such as horror auteur George Romero’s picking Michael Powell’s opera adaptation The Tales of Hoffmann. The discussions provide insight not only into the chosen films—most have been viewed repeatedly by the enthusiastic interviewees—but also into the directors’ own works. Their heartfelt and passionate tributes are cinephilia made concrete. --Gordon Flagg
Review
"If you love films and care about filmmakers, you'll have a hard time putting this book down..." --
Leonard Maltin, author of
Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide"A great and provocative read...It's addictive." --Michael Phillips, film critic, Chicago Tribune
A bonanza for film buffs & a wonderful recommendation to all who love movies. Elder has done us all a favor: read this book --Lawrence Grobel, author,
The Art of the Interview"If you love films, and care about filmmakers, you’ll have a hard time putting this book down once you dive in." —Leonard Maltin
"Elder has done us all a favor: Read this book, then go to your video store or to Netflix and see for yourself why these movies made the cut!" —Lawrence Grobel, author, Al Pacino: in Conversation and The Art of the Interview
“A great and provocative read. The wonderful thing about being a critic or a lifelong movie lover is that life changes all the time in relation to the spells being cast on the screen. Elder’s book honors that alchemic relationship many times over. It’s addictive.” —Michael Phillips, film critic, Chicago Tribune
